Advice for Your OBGYN Written Test Preparation from Former Residents

Need test preparation advice for the American Board of Obstetrics & Gynecology (ABOG) qualifying exam? We interviewed former residents who had successfully passed their OBGYN written exam and have compiled their study tips and tricks. Here’s what they had to say.

1. Give Yourself Enough Study Time

Study time varied from resident to resident. One former resident reported studying for a month, while another studied for as little as two weeks. However, both shared that they wished they had started preparing sooner. 

Others reported studying for two to three months. Ideally, OBGYN written test preparation should fall within this range.

As you create your study schedule, make sure you allow yourself time at the beginning to establish your routine and study resources. More time allows you to get acclimated to your study regime.

2. Set Study Goals

One former resident suggests setting goals, such as dedicating an hour to studying daily, to create positive study habits and increase retention. You could also set weekly goals to complete a certain number of practice questions. 

The idea behind this approach is twofold:

1. To give you smaller targets to hit so that you can measure your progress.
2. Avoid getting overwhelmed by the amount of material you need to cover.

3. Capitalize on Pockets of Free Time

Residents juggle a lot of responsibilities, and most find success in multitasking. On work days with lighter responsibilities or during slower night shifts, these residents cited being able to study during their downtime. 

However, splitting your attention during a busy shift is a no-go. Instead, capitalize on free time during any days off, at night, or when weekend plans get canceled. 

4. Prioritize your Well-Being

Most survey responses emphasized the need to take care of your well-being—both physical and mental. Exercising, spending time with family and friends, and seeking advice from a mental health professional (if needed) can help prevent burnout and improve your overall work- life balance.

5. Identify Where You Need to Improve

Self-reflection goes a long way. These experts suggest identifying your weaker areas, reviewing missed questions, and trusting what you know. A convenient way to track your performance with TrueLearn is SmartAnalytics, a dashboard that tracks your performance over time. 

6. Don’t Just Memorize – Understand

As you’re preparing to take the OBGYN written exam, the last thing you want to do is cram. Seek to understand the material instead. This will mean you need to go beyond being able to recall facts, and you have an applied knowledge of how everything fits together into clinical reasoning.

7. Select the Right Study Tools and Resources

Tap into the tried and true list of ABOG exam prep resources residents used.

TrueLearn

We appreciate hearing how much TrueLearn’s ABOG Qualifying Exam Question Bank is well-loved and has served as a good resource for so many former residents we spoke with. They enjoyed that questions were formatted closely to the exam’s format and highly recommended taking practice questions throughout your residency, if you’re not already! 

UpToDate

UpToDate is an evidence-based resource that helps clinicians answer clinical questions. The library covers OBGYN topics on the ABOG written board and offers up-to-date, relevant articles on what’s new in obstetrics and gynecology. 

ACOG resources

Many former residents cited using resources from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). The Practice Bulletin helped them study up on clinical topics, identify protocols, and map clinical scenarios with evidence-based documents. The Committee Opinion, on the other hand, aided in the education of emerging issues in the practice. 

Past CREOG Exams

Reviewing your past CREOG exams will give you an excellent idea of the areas you need to focus on as well as where your strengths lie. Every resident we spoke with found that their ITE performance predicted their boards.

Ready to take your studying to the next level? Choose your TrueLearn ABOG subscription today.